Viper Pilot_ A Memoi..

Where the commander is the personality of a squadron, the Vault is the heart.
The Vault is a secure, special-access area of the squadron that’s only entered
through a coded, double steel door. Inside are the briefing rooms, library, missionplanning
areas, map rooms, and computers. The Vault is the focal point for tactical
operations and is the province of the squadron Weapons Officer.
Also known as a Patchwearer or Target Arm, the Weapons Officer is the
squadron expert on combat operations and the training required to survive and win
wars. A graduate of the elite Fighter Weapons Instructor Course (FWIC) taught at
Nellis AFB in the Nevada desert, he’s been through the nastiest, toughest tacticalair-combat
course in the world. Think of it as a fighter pilot’s version of a Special
Forces or SEAL Team—absolutely the best of the best in tactical aviation. Easy to
spot by the black-and-gray patch (earned on completion of Fighter Weapons
School) worn on his left shoulder, the Weapons Officer is the yardstick by which
the other squadron pilots are measured. He instructs the instructors. He takes the
squadron to war.
THE PATHWAY TO THE FIGHTER WEAPONS SCHOOL WORKS LIKE THIS.
Weapons Officers are constantly evaluating the instructor pilots in their
squadrons. Target Arms select and train senior flight leads as instructors, so they’re
aware of likely candidates for several years. Each of these guys will already have
phenomenal credentials as a pilot and instructor, so what makes or breaks the
application are the recommendations from the few active Patchwearers in the wing.
Just being an extremely gifted pilot isn’t enough. The guy has to be able to teach as
well as lead, and this isn’t always the same thing.
The Air Force’s idea is to train very few individuals to a level surpassing all
others and then have them teach the rest. Aside from eye-watering flying abilities,
this is why being able to instruct is so vital. To paraphrase one Fighter Weapons
Instructor, being the best pilot in the Air Force doesn’t matter if no one can learn
from you.
Twice per year, each wing will submit a primary candidate and an alternate
from its top pilots for the Weapons School selection board to consider. So, out of
the hundreds of fighter instructor pilots in the USAF, about thirty get selected to
attend each course. For the F-16 world, that amounts to three or four from bases
within the United States, one from Germany, and two from the Far Eastern bases.
Once you’re selected, but before leaving for Nellis, you get what’s called a
“spin-up.” In essence, the Patchwearers at your base take turns beating the shit out